Herbert Alban Reeves was always referred to in the press as H. Alban Reeves. Reeves was an architect who practiced in the city of Los Angeles from 1906 to 1918.
From Notables of the Southwest.
The following biographical information is from books published during Reeves’ lifetime.
Reeves was born in London, England on November 20, 1869. His father was also an architect and his father was a fellow in the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA). His father practiced under the name of H. A. Wooster Reeves.
H. Alban Reeves acquired his primary education in private English schools and then attended the Albert Memorial College in Framlingham, Suffolk, England. After attending Albert Memorial College he attended King’s College in London. Once his studies there were completed he worked in his father’s architectural office which was also located in London.
In England he married Harriet Elizabeth Goodman in 1890. In 1891 the couple moved to the United States and settled in New York City. H. Alban Reeves had a successful career in NYC and his most recognizable building in that city was the eight-story Schuyler Arms located at 305 West 98th Street. Construction began on January 16, 1902, and was completed on May 28, 1904. The cost of the building was $243,000.
Reeves and his wife moved to Los Angeles in 1906.
INTERNATIONAL SAVINGS BANK BUILDING
From the 1910 Year Book Los Angeles Architectural Club.
A June 1906 newspaper article first mentioned the proposed International Savings Bank Building. Bank officials, it was reported, had accepted H. Alban Reeves plans and the location of the building was revealed to be the southwest corner of Temple and Spring Streets. Reeves designed the building as a 10-story bank and office building with a steel frame and an exterior clad in terra cotta.
The bank opened in September 1907 and the building was finished over the following months.
HOME IN EAGLE ROCK, CALIFORNIA
Eagle Rock was a city in Southern California located between Pasadena and Glendale, California. According to the Eagle Rock Valley Historical Society — Eagle Rock was incorporated in 1911. In 1923 Eagle Rock citizens voted to become a part of Los Angeles due to water issues. Eagle Rock needed water and Los Angeles had it. In 2024 Eagle Rock retains its name, like Hollywood does, but Eagle Rock, since 1923, has been a part of Los Angeles.
I found two short blurbs regarding Reeves’ Eagle Rock home. The first was in the Highland Park News-Herald & Journal which stated, “H. Alban Reeves, the well-known architect, is planning a Moorish residence, to be built upon his country place on Colorado street, near Townsend avenue.”
The residence doesn’t look Moorish.
The only other mention I found was a Times newspaper article dated September 1, 1907, which stated Reeves would “soon build a handsome country residence” in Eagle Rock on Colorado Boulevard. It looks more like a country residence, so he must have decided against the Moorish element though that driveway looks a bit sketchy. I think I would build a short concrete wall to prevent my car from veering into that gully.
EAGLE ROCK BANK
The above image is from a 1920s publication called California Southland.
A June 4, 1910, article in the Highland Park News-Herald & Journal mentioned another big project Reeves undertook. It was for the Eagle Rock Bank which was founded on July 1, 1907. The bank was slated for the corner of Colorado Boulevard and Central Avenue (which is now known as Eagle Rock Boulevard). Reeves designed the bank in the Italian Renaissance style. It was constructed of concrete, accented with marble and brick, and had a tile roof.
The photograph of the building above indicates Security Trust & Savings Bank had moved into the building by January 1924.
POMONA CITY HALL
Postcard circa 1930.
H. Alban Reeves also designed the Pomona City Hall in 1910. Pomona is a city approximately thirty miles east of Los Angeles. Reeves designed the building in a classical style with four ionic columns at the entrance. The building occupied an entire city block between Fourth and Fifth Streets and Main and Thomas Streets. The building sat on lot that measured 259 feet by 245 feet.
The building was topped by a reinforced concrete dome with ornamental glass. The rotunda in the building was fifty feet square. The rotunda, lobby and staircase were all clad in marble. The Pomona City Hall measured 84 feet by 91 feet, was two stories, and contained a basement. The cost of the building was approximately $30,000.
Here’s another view of the building on a postcard. It looks like a Carnegie library.
END
H. Alban Reeves died on May 17, 1918. According to the Eagle Rock Sentinel he had been ill for two weeks. He died at his home located at 1200 E. Colorado Boulevard. He was 49 years old and was survived by his wife and step-son Langley J. Goodman. No cause of death was listed.
Note: Los Angeles reported its first known cases of the Spanish Flu in September 1918 and Mayor Woodman declared a state of emergency on October 11, 1918.
H. Alban Reeves was a member of the Southern California Chapter of the American Institute of Architects and a member of the University Club.
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Sources
1910 Yearbook Los Angeles Architectural Club (Los Angeles: Geo. Rice & Sons,1910), unpaged.
“Beautiful Home of H. Alban Reeves, Eagle Rock,” Los Angeles Herald, October 24, 1909, 5.
“Build for Future: Up-to-Date Municipality to Erect Imposing Structure to House City Government,” Los Angeles Times, January 9, 1910, V1.
“Death of H. Alban Reeves,” Eagle Rock Sentinel, May 23, 1918, 1.
“Eagle Rock Bank Building Commenced,” Highland Park News-Herald & Journal, June 4, 1910, 3.
Franklin Harper, ed., Who’s Who on the Pacific Coast (Los Angeles: Harper Publishing Company, 1913), 472.
“Herbert Alban Reeves,” The Western Architect 27, no. 12 (December 1918): VI.
“Interest in Eagle Rock,” Highland Park News-Herald & Journal, August 24, 1907, 1.
“Much Work in Sight,” Los Angeles Times, September 1, 1907, V14.
“New Home of Eagle Rock Branch,” California Southland 6, no. 49 (January 1924): 26.
“New Work Planned,” Los Angeles Times, June 3, 1906, V24.
Notables of the Southwest (International News Service: Los Angeles, 1913), 554.
Who’s Who in the Pacific Southwest (Los Angeles: The Times-Mirror Printing & Binding House, 1913), 311.
I bought the postcards off eBay.
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I have a new book coming out from McFarland. It’s called Fifteen Los Angeles Architects. It’s about California architects from the turn of the last century and is scheduled for release in 2024 or 2025.
My book from the History Press, Architects Who Built Southern California, was released on March 11, 2019. It’s 10 chapters with each chapter devoted to a different architect (or architectural firm) including: Harrison Albright, John Austin, Claud Beelman, Elmer Grey, Hudson & Munsell, A. C. Martin, Meyer & Holler, Julia Morgan, Morgan Walls & Clements and Alfred F. Rosenheim.
The Schuyler Arms in New York City still stands. It’s a co-op now. All of the California buildings in this post were demolished and no longer physically exist, but I remember them.
misterdangerous 